Motor vehicle production up 5% in 8 months

MANILA, Philippines — Motor vehicle production in the Philippines went up nearly five percent from January to August, posting better growth performance than most of its peers in Southeast Asia.

Data from the ASEAN (Association of Southeast Asian Nations) Automotive Federation showed the Philippines churned out 58,386 motor vehicles as of end-August, up from 55,784 units in the same period last year.

Apart from the Philippines, Myanmar was the only other country in the region which posted growth. Myanmar posted a 46 percent growth in production to 10,136 units in the eight-month period from 6,946 units a year ago.

ASEAN’s automotive hub Thailand registered a slight decline in motor vehicle output to 1.403 million units in the January to August period from the previous year’s 1.421 million units.

Indonesia’s motor vehicle output dropped 5.8 percent to 831,708 units as of end-August from last year’s 883,130 units, while Malaysia registered a slight dip in motor vehicle production to 380,940 units during the period from 383,498 units a year ago. Vietnam’s production also declined 12 percent to 117,159 units in the eight-month period from the previous year’s 132,654 units.

In all, the number of vehicles produced in the ASEAN slid 2.8 percent in the January to August period to 2.801 million units from 2.883 million units last year.

In terms of motor vehicle sales, the Philippines saw a 2.4 percent increase in sales to 235,544 units in the eight-month period from 229,941 units a year ago.

Most countries in ASEAN registered higher motor vehicle sales in the January to August period.

Thailand sold 685,652 units as of end-August, up 4.2 percent from the previous year’s 657,878 units, while Vietnam had a 19.5 percent growth in sales to 202,567 units in the eight-month period from 169,504 units a year ago.

Singapore’s motor vehicle sales also grew 2.6 percent to 64,168 units in the January to August period from 62,570 units last year, while Myanmar posted a 25 percent uptick in sales to 12,441 units in the eight-month period from the previous year’s 9,953 units. Brunei also saw a 5.5 percent increase in sales to 7,931 units as of end-August from 7,521 units a year ago.

Indonesia and Malaysia, on the other hand, had lower motor vehicles sales in the January to August period.

In particular, Indonesia sold 660,720 units as of end-August, down 13.4 percent from 763,322 units last year, while Malaysia’s sales declined six percent to 398,335 units in the eight-month period from 423,615 units in the previous year.

Total motor vehicle sales in ASEAN were down 2.5 percent to 2.267 million units in the January to August period from 2.324 million units a year ago.

Earlier, Chamber of Automotive Manufacturers of the Philippines Inc. (CAMPI) president Rommel Gutierrez said the group is optimistic it would see recovery this year after its sales declined 16 percent to 357,410 units last year from 425,673 units in 2017, as higher taxes under the government’s tax reform program affected demand for cars.